Enter and view: Hinchingbrooke Healthcare NHS Trust

Healthwatch Cambridgeshire undertook an unannounced enter and view visit to the Emergency Department at Hinchingbrooke Healthcare NHS Trust on 5 and 8 October 2016.  They spoke to 35 people.

Almost half of the patients  had not contacted another service before coming to the Emergency Department. Nearly a third had contacted their G.P. Many patients told us they wouldn’t mind being referred to a different hospital or service for the right treatment. However, a significant minority of patients stated they would prefer to remain locally. 

40% of patients who had completed a questionnaire had visited an Emergency Department with the same or a different concern in the previous twelve months. Most patients coming to the Emergency Department when it was quiet were seen promptly. 

When the reception desk was not staffed, patients were confused and mistakenly queued at the triage desk when other patients were talking to the triage nurse. Triage generally happened at a desk in the waiting area where patients were afforded no privacy and possibly confidential information could be overheard by those in the waiting area. 

Patients were seen within the four-hour target, with about half being seen within one hour. There was one exception in Ambulatory Care, where a patient was waiting to see a doctor before being discharged. At the time of the visit, Healthwatch were told there were no empty beds in the hospital so new patients could not be admitted to the wards. This put considerable pressure on the Emergency Department. 

Patients who were waiting to be admitted were being nursed in the treatment cubicles; this then impacted on waiting times. Healthwatch observed that some patients had to remain in ambulances until there was an available space.

Waiting times were displayed on a board in the waiting area. Some patients were observed to wait considerably longer than the times displayed. Some delays appear to be compounded by long waits for information/records from other departments. In both the treatment cubicles and ambulatory care most of the patients had been informed about what was happening with their treatment. 

40% of patients in the treatment cubicles and 93% patients in Ambulatory Care who had completed questionnaires had been offered refreshments. 

Patients made several positive comments about the staff and quality of care in the treatment cubicles and the Ambulatory Care Unit. 

The Emergency Department waiting area and treatment cubicles were clean, bright, welcoming and well maintained. 

The Ambulatory Care Unit would benefit from refurbishment. Patients made some recommendations to improve care in the waiting area, treatment cubicles, and the Ambulatory Care Unit.